


one call away

by ohjustpeachy



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bodyguard, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Angst with a Happy Ending, Fluff, Getting Together, M/M, Pining
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-15
Updated: 2020-02-17
Packaged: 2021-02-28 07:07:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22529824
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ohjustpeachy/pseuds/ohjustpeachy
Summary: Steve gets a job as Tony Stark's body guard after years of hearing about what a nightmare he is to work with. He takes the job to pay his mother's medical bills, but he doesn't expect Tony to surprise him, or to feel so conflicted about their relationship.
Relationships: Steve Rogers/Tony Stark
Comments: 23
Kudos: 157
Collections: Tony Stark Bingo 2020





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This has been a long time coming and I had to start posting it or I literally never would! It's the longest thing I've ever written for sure, so feel free to let me know what you think along the way! :)
> 
> Thank you to Nadine for the most thoughtful beta-ing!! And to everyone who listened to me cry about this asdfghj ILY. 
> 
> *I also want to note that there's vague mentions of cancer treatments for Sarah Rogers, in case that bothers you! (But, I am who I am and can promise it'll be okay in the end).

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve never wanted the job as Tony Stark's bodyguard.

Steve didn’t really _want_ the job as Tony Stark’s bodyguard. For one thing, the guy was notoriously impossible to work with. Steve’s friends had told him horror stories, passed around the industry like a game of whisper down the lane with more muscle. The second, and more selfish thing, was that Steve hated the spotlight, and while a lot of their clients were high-profile, none have the status of Tony Stark, and Steve didn’t know if he was ready for that kind of lifestyle change. The constant press, scandals, and drama that followed Stark was several tiers above any client he’d had before, and Steve didn’t feel ready to cope with that, let alone introduce any kind of major change to his mother’s already fragile state.

The problem is that Steve had been between clients for almost two months. His savings were dwindling, and he wouldn’t be able to pay his rent if he didn’t land something soon. As it was, every dollar was going to his mother’s care; that was, and had to remain, his priority. Steve didn’t have the luxury of being choosy with his clients anymore. Which is why, when Fury raised the Tony Stark question again, knowing full well that he was putting Steve between a rock and a hard place, Steve heaved a sigh and nodded. He knew that in doing so, he was resigning himself to months of frustration, paparazzi, and more time unleashing his stress at the gym than ever, but he didn’t see any other choice for himself, either. 

Aside from what he’d heard from other people, Steve actually didn’t know very much about the man behind Stark Industries. At least, nothing that he could say for sure. He knew what everyone else knew, most of it through gossip blogs and social media, disparate stories tying together neatly enough to form something of a narrative. Tony’s story was hardly unique, but it was public and therefore more well known than most, which garnered him more sympathy than others. To Steve’s knowledge, it went something like this: Tony Stark was a boy genius who had a rough relationship with his alcoholic father. Said father died relatively young, alongside his mother, in a hit and run accident. The guy had never been found, and in the wake of their deaths, then twenty-three-year-old Tony had spiraled, turning to alcohol and sex and god only knows what else for a few years, spending money that would never run out on his path to self destruction. 

Now, Tony is thirty-three, eight years older than Steve, and much more wealthy. He’d managed to turn his life around in recent years, regained control of Stark Industries and made ground-breaking changes throughout the industry. He makes plenty of public appearances, talking at conferences and meeting with students; thus, the need for security services among the endless throngs of people. And, Steve learns in his first conversations with Fury, Tony didn’t just need crown control anymore. It turns out that not _everyone_ had forgiven Tony’s past discretions, and more than that, some people thought the man was trying to _play god_ with his innovations. Steve had thumbed through countless reports of threats on Tony’s life, all of which are in the thick, rubber banded file Fury provided him when Steve accepted the job. 

Despite his reservations about his new charge, however, Steve feels for Tony, in a way. He’s no stranger to loss; his own father left before Steve turned two. This meant his mother had to be mother, father, and a friend to boot. She’d done everything in her power to make up the difference, to give Steve the best life she could. She pulled double shifts at the hospital where she worked as a pediatric nurse, beloved among doctors and patients alike, and always made time to come to Steve’s school events, teacher conferences, and baseball games. They might not have had lavish vacations or brand-name snacks, but they had each other, and they’d done alright, over the years. 

At least, until Sarah’s cancer diagnosis a few months earlier.

It had come as a surprise, as these things always do; a routine checkup raising a flag, spurring more and more tests, only to come away with their worst-case scenario. They’d let themselves cry together for two days, and then, as they’d done for Steve’s entire life, they got back up to fight it. Steve decided then that he would work as hard as he could to help his mom with the medical bills. The last thing he wanted was for her to be worried about money rather than focused on simply getting better. He needed her to get better. 

He needed her.

 _Treatable_ , the doctors had said. _We caught it early; you’re very lucky._

Somehow, _lucky_ was the last thing they felt, but they’d given tight-lipped smiles and nodded, looked at each other, united as ever in their determination to fight this thing. Because Sarah was a fighter first and foremost, had fought for Steve through most of his young life, and he knew they would continue to fight for each other now, this time with Steve leading the charge. Even if that meant finally giving in and taking on Tony Stark as a client. 

Growing up, Steve had been a relatively small kid for his age, a full head shorter than Bucky, who had grown up in the apartment next door to Steve and his mom. They’d grown up as latch key kids, both their mothers working long hours, and while they started out as best friends and sidekicks by proximity, they never turned their backs on each other, even once they reached the age where they could have made new friends, the way kids so often did, turning their childhood friends into fond memories. At twenty-five, most of Steve’s best memories _did_ include Bucky, but the difference was that they kept adding new ones. 

Buck is a year older than Steve, and occasionally plays the dual role of best friend _and_ older brother, especially when Steve “went sticking his nose into things he had no business in,” as Bucky loves to remind him. Sure, this habit got Steve more than his fair share of bloody noses and black eyes growing up, but his need to stand up for people who needed him also made him the perfect candidate for a bodyguard later in life. He’d never had any problem putting the safety of others at the forefront. 

Plus, it got Bucky off his back, most of the time. 

* * *

Steve meets Tony for the first time at Stark Tower on a sunny afternoon, along with his assistant, Pepper Potts, who’d found and hired Shield Total Security in the first place. Pepper is all business, constantly clicking away at her phone, the procedural questions rolling right off her tongue, and Steve wonders how she kept all her plates spinning while working for someone like Stark, who seemed surrounded by chaotic energy. 

Right off the bat, Steve notices that Tony is almost exactly what he expected. He’s wearing an exquisitely cut suit that looks like it costs more than Steve makes in a month, his hair is perfectly coiffed, and he has a sharp tongue that was definitely going to cause Steve his fair share of problems. Tony is quirky and snarky and everything about him looks expensive, though Steve has to admit that he doesn’t seem to be the kind of smarmy, alcoholic playboy people continually describe him to be. He jokes and flirts, sure, but it’s more like Tony knows his worth and his value and wanted to ignore all of that in favor of making jokes, of making _friends_ , if the way Tony kept winking and grinning was anything to go by. 

“I keep telling you, Pep, I don’t _need_ a bodyguard. I mean, I’m asking the world to trust me enough to keep them safe, but I need some other schmuck,” he turns to Steve with a sheepish look. “Not _you_ , but you know what I mean. ...Anyway, I need protection when I’m supposed to be _providing_ the protection? Doesn’t make a whole lot of sense,” Tony says. He kind of has a point, Steve realizes. 

“You aren’t always in a state of total awareness, Tony,” Pepper says wryly. “And anyway, this is just a precaution. There have been _more_ than enough kidnappings and attempts on your life, don’t you think? Maybe Mr. Rogers here will last long enough to help us prevent any more of them,” Pepper remarks with a raised eyebrow. Steve can tell from her tone that this is a conversation they’ve had _many_ times before. He hopes Tony wouldn’t force the issue this time though, since the paychecks he had coming would make all of this worth it. 

“Yeah, yeah, I’m just making sure you realize that this isn’t exactly _logical_ ,” Tony says. “Besides, I’m not complaining. He’s too pretty _not_ to have next to me all day everyday.” He winks in Steve’s direction and before Steve can muster up a response, Pepper is back in action. 

“ _Tony_ that is called sexual harassment!” Pepper says sharply. “I’m sorry, Mr. Rogers,” she says with an apologetic look. “I’d love to say he isn’t always like this, but, well…” Steve bites down on his lip, trying not to smile at the innocent looks Tony is shooting over at both of them. 

“I’m just _saying_ , look at the muscles on him,” Tony reaches out a hand as if to pat Steve’s bicep, only for Pepper to slap it away. 

“You’re a child. Maybe if you’d act your age and stop scaring people off, you’d be able to keep a security team longer than a month!” Pepper looks ready to storm away in her four inch heels, but remembers Steve is still standing there, looking between them like he was watching a tennis match, a smile pulling at his lips. She stays put, though it’s not without a long-suffering sigh.

“I’m sure things will go just fine, Ms. Potts, I don’t scare easy. I’m here to keep things running smoothly, to be quiet and alert, so we can keep Mr. Stark safe; we don’t have to be friends for that to happen.” Steve doesn’t mean to be _unfriendly_ when he says this, at least not intentionally so. He just wanted to reassure his future employers that he’s capable, competent, and professional, especially in the face of whatever challenges Tony Stark might bring. 

And maybe as a reminder for himself, too, because with the way that _I’m-so-charming_ smile is curling over Tony’s lips, he’s probably going to need it. 

Tony makes a show of pouting, then looks Steve over, slowly enough to make Steve duck his head and glare at the floor. “I don’t know about that, Mr. Rogers. I think I make a pretty good friend.” Tony’s gaze is all heat and innuendo, and Steve isn’t sure if it’s an intimidation tactic or something personal, but he feels the air between them tense. 

As if sensing this, Pepper clears her throat and claps her hands together once, enthusiastically. 

“Great, that’s that, then. Steve, why don’t I get your signature on a few of these forms, then we can hit the ground running, if that sounds good to you? Nick Fury had nothing but great things to say about you, and I have to say, we were very lucky to find someone so highly recommended.”

Steve thanks her for the kind words, though he has to hold back an eye roll. Of course he came highly recommended, he was literally the _only_ man for the job. Not that Pepper or Stark would ever find that out, of course, he’d make sure of that.

“I for one,” Tony smirked, “Am counting my lucky stars, Mr. Rogers.” 

_Not here to make friends._ Definitely _not here to make friends._ Steve repeats it over in his head as he signs a nondisclosure agreement, settles on an official start date, and shakes hands with both Pepper and Tony, the latter holding onto his hand a sliver of a second too long. By the time Steve leaves the imposing Stark Tower and walks back to his beat-up Honda Civic, he’s flushed pink, all the way down to his chest, sure he can still feel Stark’s knowing brown eyes on him.

He wonders if now is too soon to tell Fury he needs a raise.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A conversation with Bucky, and Steve's first day on the job. What if there's more to Tony than meets the eye?

“So, you gave in,” Bucky accuses when they meet at the gym later that evening. 

“Buck,” Steve sighs wearily. “What was I supposed to do? Tell me, what choice did I have _but_ to take on Stark? Get evicted? Live on peanut butter sandwiches and let Ma waste away in a place where people don’t actually care about her? No, no, and _no_ . I had to do it.” Steve is adamant, his face hot with indignation at the way Bucky keeps looking at him. His face isn’t quite pity, but it is somewhere just on the outskirts of it. _Charity_ , Steve knew. Bucky’s been offering to lend Steve enough money to keep him going for a while, not that he’d ever let him do it. They’d both grown up with next to nothing, getting jobs at fifteen and sixteen to help their parents make ends meet. Steve hadn’t known a life without hard work, and he wasn’t about to let his best friend work to pay his mother’s medical bills. 

And, sure, it’d be nice to have money, if only so he didn’t have to worry so much. Maybe the perpetual knot in his stomach would have room to unspool just a little, letting him sleep soundly and without wondering how he was going to make rent. It would be incredible to have the kind of wealthy clients who tipped generously every single week _on top of_ an already outrageous salary. But Steve was relatively new, still making a name for himself in the business after finally letting Bucky refer him to Shield Total Security, where he’d been working for nearly five years now. While Steve had hoped to build up a reputation strong enough to earn better clients and therefore more money, he’d never expected to be saddled with a client like Tony Stark, especially not so early on. A guy like that should have someone much more senior, but the problem was, of course, his reputation. None of the more experienced guys wanted him, and so Steve, being the newest and most un-jaded among them, is stuck with him for the foreseeable future. The only thing is, the more Steve thinks about it, the less _stuck_ he feels. He’s never been one to back away from a challenge, and Tony would be nothing if not challenging professionally, and, if his antics that morning were any indication, emotionally.

But for better or worse, Monday morning, Steve is going to find out. 

Bucky eyes Steve in the mirror as they lift, and Steve makes a point not to make eye contact. 

“You know, I really could just—”

“No, Buck, you cannot _just_ anything _._ Come on, I told you no. Thank you, I love and appreciate you, but no.” Steve interrupts him, nearly throwing the weight down with the force of his answer. He stares at it, sheepish, before picking it up again and setting it down carefully on the rack.

“Fine, suit yourself, but if he tries anything with you, I’ll fuck him up,” Bucky says, sounding far too much like an older brother for Steve’s liking, though he tries to remind himself that it’s not without reason. Steve and Bucky had grown up in each other’s pockets, brought together by their mothers, who met at a neighborhood health clinic not long after Steve was born. Bucky was only a year older than Steve, but from the time they were toddlers, he loved nothing more than to remind him of it. They’d kept each other company after school, making snacks and waiting for long shifts to end together. Not that he’d ever say so out loud, but Steve knows that he likely wouldn’t have survived his lonelier, scrawnier years without him. Steve imagines the whole ‘protective older brother’ thing is kind of a hard habit to break, despite the years and the muscle they’ve gained between then and now. But even so, he can’t help but roll his eyes and demand: 

“ _Tries_ anything with me? What does that even mean? Also, you know I weigh just about as much as you now, right? We work for the same place, I’m in the best shape of my life, and I can look after myself.” 

“Yeah, yeah, Stevie needs nothing from nobody, I got it. It wouldn’t kill you to accept a little help here and there, though, you know that right? No one’ll think less of you.” 

Steve sighs and looks at Bucky. He cares about him, Steve knows, and is really only trying to do his best for his best friend. “Alright, alright, since you’re so old and wise, spot me while I do this?” Steve asks as he approaches a bench. 

Bucky mumbles something about that not being what he meant, but ambles over after Steve anyway. Tony Stark is momentarily forgotten among their friendly ribbing and the sore muscles and sweat that comes from a thorough workout.

* * *

By the time Monday morning comes around, Steve is a bundle of nerves, anxious to see how his first day accompanying Tony Stark will go. Pepper had emailed him the night before, letting him know to meet Tony at the tower, and they’d go together to a lecture he had to give at MIT that afternoon. It sounded easy enough: a long car ride followed by listening to Tony talk to a few students. Steve could ease himself in with an assignment like that.

“Morning,” Tony says when Steve arrives. He’s wearing another expensive-looking suit, a blue silk shirt, and a tie. The whole ensemble makes him look like he could be teaching a class of his own. A pair of reading glasses are perched on his nose as he reads from a tablet in front of him, adding another layer of studiousness to him, and Steve wonders if it’s intentional, if this is just part of it, the whole Tony Stark persona. 

Tony catches Steve looking and slips the glasses off, setting them down on the table. “Not as young as I used to be,” he says. It takes Steve by surprise to see this layer of vulnerability in Tony’s otherwise over-confident demeanor. As if catching himself and immediately moving to regain control of the moment, Tony looks him in the eye and asks, smooth as ever, “How are we this morning, Muscles?” 

Steve hates himself for the flush that colors his cheeks at the comment. He gives Tony what he hopes is an even look before responding.

“Good morning, Mr. Stark,” he says. 

It’s not that he’s self conscious about his size. The opposite, in fact. He’d worked hard, building himself up and balancing his diet. In high school he’d been _tiny_ , one hundred and thirty pounds soaking wet, and if it hadn’t been for Bucky, he’d have been beaten up more times than he could count. Bucky had always been the one to talk sense into him and drag him away from fights he had no business being in. But it was strange, still, even ten years on, having a body so big and powerful that people commented on it like it was public property. It’s usually complimentary, but it makes him feel like a piece of meat for sale at the butcher.

“You don’t have to call me Mr. Stark, big guy. We’re not formal here,” Tony tells him with a wink. 

God, maybe Steve should have put more stock into the warnings he’d been given about this guy. 

“You might not be, but this _is_ my profession, Mr. Stark, and I’m here to make sure things go smoothly, that’s all.”

Something flickers in Tony’s eyes. “Ah yes, I’d almost forgotten. Professional Steven Grant Rogers is not here to make friends,” Tony says. 

Steve does his best not to react to the use of his middle name. How had Tony known that? Did he have a file on Steve, the way Steve had one on him? He can’t worry about it now, but he makes a mental note to ask Fury next time he sees him. 

“Exactly. Now, I believe the lecture starts at two, so we should really be heading out,” Steve tells him, gesturing to the door. He has no idea how they were getting there, but figures it’s always best to at least _look_ like he’s unflappable. 

“Happy is pulling the car around now. He’s my … driver. Sorry, I was going to say friend, too, but I know you don’t like that word.” There’s that playful look again, like Tony can’t wait to get a reaction from him. But Steve is _not_ going to give him that, especially not on his first day.

“Wonderful,” is all he says in response, and he takes silent joy in the borderline pouty look he gets in return. 

“Fine. _Fine_ , we’ll do things your way for now, Muscles, but I’ll get you to crack sooner or later.” 

Tony’s confidence rolls off him in waves, so Steve knows he wouldn’t be backing down from his quest without a fight. A tense anticipation roils inside him at the realization.

“Whatever you say, _sir._ ” He doesn’t miss the grimace on Tony’s face, and files the nickname away for another day. 

Even with their somewhat turbulent start, the morning passes without incident. 

Steve stays backstage while Tony inspires young, entrepreneurial minds with his signature no-bullshit style. He talks to them like peers or colleagues rather than first and second year college students who are more than likely still hungover from the weekend. From what Steve can tell backstage, the students really took to Tony, hanging around to chat and ask him questions that get answered with patience and consideration. Tony doesn’t act like he’s any smarter than any of them, just walks through ideas and projects like he’d be heading to class along with them afterward.

He’s _nice_ , Steve realizes. He isn’t sure why this surprises him as much as it does. Maybe it’s just that based on the things he’d heard and how Tony seemed to enjoy a certain level of chaos, he expected Tony’s talk to be just that. Tell the kids something sarcastic, something faux smart about tech and leave. Maybe collect a paycheck on the way out, though he hardly needed to. But Tony is patient and kind to them, and Steve’s pretty sure he hears him mutter something to one kid about grant money and slipping him a card. 

Steve is stunned. 

“That was nice, that you did up there,” Steve tells him when they get back in the car, Happy quiet in the front. 

“Just did what I came to do, Mr. Rogers,” Tony says, looking at him strangely. 

“I know but you… I just thought…” Steve isn’t sure how to continue. 

“Ah,” is all Tony says, his face unchanged but his voice falls just a little. If Steve wasn’t trained to be hyper-aware, he’d have missed it altogether. “Billionaire asshole Tony Stark is only here to make an appearance, fulfill a commitment, I get it.”

Steve wants to cover his face with his hands. “That’s not what I meant,” he tries.

“Sure it is, Muscles. Don’t worry, you’re not the first and you’re definitely not the last. People read things, they make assumptions. I know it, I just don’t know why I let it continue to surprise me.” Tony stares out the window, and the disappointment in his voice put a heaviness in Steve’s chest. 

They ride back to the tower in silence, and Steve worries that this whole thing might be over as quickly as it started. He would be the first to be fired by Stark instead of running from him. How would he even begin to explain that he, the most even-tempered, nice guy on the squad had managed to offend Tony Stark? He bites his lip to stop himself from putting his head in his hands. 

“Are you really going to pay that kid’s tuition and call it a grant?” Steve asks, the silence unbearably thick between them. 

Tony gives him a weary look. “Why not? He’s brilliant, and he’s going to kill himself working three jobs to pay his rent before he gets to do anything with it,” he says. “He’s got a sick mother at home, worrying himself sick about paying for her care, and still working harder right now than I’ve had to work in my whole life; the least I can do is help him make something that’ll probably make the world a better place one day.”

_A sick mother at home_ . The words hit Steve square in the chest. Steve knows he’s not the only one facing such grim circumstances, knows, of course, that Tony lost _his_ mother at a relatively young age, but still, the compassion in Tony’s voice, the way he acts like helping people is the least he can do… It makes Steve think, to say the least, about the way he assumes things about people without really getting to know them first. 

Steve swallows. “That’s really great of you, Mr. Stark. You just changed his life completely. Maybe his mother’s, too.” Tony wouldn’t know, but a windfall like Tony gave that kid could save _Steve’s_ life, too, not that he would ever let that information slip in Tony’s presence, but still. It’s comforting, knowing there are people like Tony out there, doing good just because they can. 

“Yeah,” Tony says, then he’s quiet for a beat. “That amount of money is everything to him and nothing to me… Pepper would kill me if I did stuff like that _all_ the time, creates a lot of paperwork, but,” Tony shrugs. “Like I said, he has amazing ideas, and it’s the least I could do.”

They lapse into silence again after that, Tony clicking away on his phone, and Steve’s relieved that things have settled between them. 

He can’t afford to lose this job, but a small part of him doesn’t _want_ to, either. 

**Author's Note:**

> I'm omg-just-peachy on tumblr, come say hi!


End file.
